An intuitive explanation is that financial products are, approximately, buying and selling as part of the same transaction. You can't separate the "selling premiums" part from the "paying out claims" part.
This is true of life insurance, investment firms, and banks. It's also true of marketplaces that connect buyers and sellers, like Etsy.
Groceries stores are buying from suppliers and selling to consumers, but those are separate operations. If the consumers opt out, the grocery stores (temporarily) still have a full and complete obligation to their suppliers. It's hard to sell to customers without supply, but if you try hard, you could theoretically do that as well.
Somebody with a better financial background might be able to define the nuances of accounting practices here, but there's already a pretty meaningful line that's established. It is kind of weird that health insurance doesn't behave like a financial product.
This is true of life insurance, investment firms, and banks. It's also true of marketplaces that connect buyers and sellers, like Etsy.
Groceries stores are buying from suppliers and selling to consumers, but those are separate operations. If the consumers opt out, the grocery stores (temporarily) still have a full and complete obligation to their suppliers. It's hard to sell to customers without supply, but if you try hard, you could theoretically do that as well.
Somebody with a better financial background might be able to define the nuances of accounting practices here, but there's already a pretty meaningful line that's established. It is kind of weird that health insurance doesn't behave like a financial product.